Enjoy the free ride while you can, kayakers, paddleboarders and rafters.
Beginning in 2026, all non-motorized boats 10 feet or under in Oregon will have to have a waterway access permit, which will cost $20 per year.
The expanded permit requirement is part of an effort to keep the state’s lakes and rivers clean of invasive species under House Bill 2982, which Gov. Tina Kotek signed into law last month.
But not without some controversy.
The Oregon State Marine Board, which oversees recreational boating in the state, told the Salem Statesman Journal earlier this month that inner tubes – including two tubes tied together — would face the $20 fee as well. Following reader outrage and the announcement of a peaceful “float protest” planned for early August, state officials backed off that position last week.
“The definition of a boat is where things went sideways a bit,” Ashley Massey, a marine board spokesperson, told The Oregonian/OregonLive.
She further clarified the rule in an email: “The interpretation for enforcement purposes for safety equipment and waterway access permit requirements does not include single inner tubes or single inner tubes tied together.”
Oregon is expanding the permit requirement to kayaks, stand-up paddleboards and rafts in part to raise money to fight invasive mussels.
— The Oregonian/Oregon Live
This is a money grab transparent and wrong.